Managing tourist villages: Mexico and France, their experiences

Abstract

Tourism as an alternative is here to stay in contemporary economies, which have valued entire cities and small towns. On these last territories, two cases are studied: Magical Towns and The Most Beautiful Villages of France.  Much has been discussed about the effectiveness and efficiency of the Pueblos Mágicos program in Mexico. The recent decline in its federal budget is a sign that it has been in question for several years. Of the strongest criticisms that have been made, the one referring to the alteration of heritage stands out, as well as its negative impact on the cultural and natural in the settlements where it has been applied. Such acussation have been omitted by the official instances and by inhabitants of the Magic Town in question, because they prioritize the economic spillover. Thus, to orient oneself on what to do to solve this problem, it is very useful to compare what solutions have been taken by other countries that pose the same problem. In this work, as far as possible, a comparison of the French program and the Mexican programme is made. Among the most notable differences, it is noted that in France the programme in question is financed by private initiative, which is why it does not represent a burden on the State's finances; it has other criteria of care for heritage and this program, due to its advantages, has been extended to a certain number of countries even outside Europe.